Leoren

Leoren (pronounced /liˈɔərɪn/) is a nation of Jhembaz, laying claim to the lands surrounding Lake Rhu, an arboreal lake well above Jhembaz's surface, nestled in a thick mat of branches and leaves. Leoren is an insular nation, having little direct contact with others, though it is formally a member of the Sixty, and has on rare occasion provided aid to its fellow members in need. For the most part, Leoren is content to tend to its own affairs, which largely center around devotion to some mysterious being that they suppose to dwell in the depths of the lake.

Government

Leoren's government is led by a group called the Blue Council, made up currently of eight individuals, though historically its size has varied between five and fifteen. The Council rules absolutely, passing Leoren's laws and making final judgments over matters that have passed through the lower courts. There is no publicly known procedure ruling how the Council comes to decisions, or what happens if its members disagree. Somehow, the Council's decisions always seem to be unanimous—if they have different opinions, they apparently settle the matters before making any announcements. The Council in turn, however, claims to take its orders from Bhaluhd, the strange entity they believe to lie at the center of Lake Rhu. If this is true, it would explain the consentience of their decisions.

Below the Blue Council, Leoren is divided into provinces each of which is led by a provincial governor. Each governor is advised, however, by an official called a chaplain, who serves Bhaluhd and conducts ceremonies to honor it, and while formally the chaplain is supposed to have only a consultive capacity, in practice, in most provinces at least, the chaplain is the true power behind the governor's seat.

Society

Much of Leoren's culture revolves around honoring Bhaluhd, the Master of the Lake, who is nominally the ruler of the nation, and whom the Leoreni venerate almost as a deity. Invocations to Bhaluhd are a part of everyday life on various occasions, and numerous quotidian minor sacrifices are made in its name.

Outsiders often assume that the citizens of Leoren are required by law to devote themselves to Bhaluhd. Various accounts circulate about the dire penalties the government enacts on those who refuse to kowtow to the Master of the Lake; some even say that Bhaluhd itself visits some horrible fate on the unfaithful. Actually, this is all untrue; nothing in Leoren's laws mandates that its citizens must pay homage to the entity supposedly at its head. There is, however, tremendous social pressure to worship Bhaluhd, and those who refuse to engage in the attendant rituals, though meeting with no official penalty, are likely to find themselves ostracized, or at least objects of some discomfort.

Geography

Leoren is roughly ellipsoidal in shape, centered around Lake Rhu. It measures about 550 meters along its longest axis, 215 kilometers along its other horizontal axis, and forty-five kilometers in height. The vast majority of the population lives in the upper half of the ellipsoid, the lower half being mostly filled with dense foliage.

Much of Leoren is a mosaic of wetwood and saxetum, with the occasional patch of other terrains such as blackbriar and spadix. Lake Rhu itself is supported principally by matted platweed and broad leaves of underlilies.

Trade

Though other nations may have a certain amount of mistrust of Leoren and contempt of its devotion to Bhaluhd, it still manages to keep up a lively trade with other nations. Leoren's principal exports include nuts, foilwood, and numerous kinds of fish caught in Lake Rhu, as well as certain talismans, most notably magic clothing and jewelry, for which it is particularly noted. In return, Leoren imports grains and fruits and various woods and materials useful in construction, in addition to various manufactured goods.